Sometime in the next 24 hours we cross both the equator and the international date line. We will go from Saturday directly to Monday without ever experiencing Sunday. That is the date line.
We will also go from mid-autumn to mid-spring in the southern hemisphere. That is the equator. Of course here near the equator the seasons don’t mean a lot, but by the time we get to Sydney we’ll notice the difference.
For the last day or so the ocean has been almost dead calm, which makes cruising more pleasant. The air is warm and humid, welcome to the tropics. In the days of sailing ships they’d call what we’re steaming through “the doldrums” and they’d be becalmed as there is no wind.
Experienced mariners in sailing ship days would try to plot routes that avoided the region of little wind. We have no such problem, we burn fuel and keep on truckin’.
The ship we’re on - the Westerdam - is 20 years old, christened in 2004. More modern ships have several specialty restaurants while this one has only two, and one of those tucked in a corner of the Lido deck buffet restaurant. The ship is well maintained, doesn’t look shabby, but does lack some of the modern features. I wonder if she’ll be stationed in Australia/New Zealand for the next several years?
